FlashInThePan

Thanks for the needlessly rude response. Perhaps you misread my post, I entirely agree that he grew last season and I really hope that it continues. I am just remarking that his body of work is not at the level where I am completely certain that it will. I don't think there is anything silly about it, although I know your form on this forum enough to know that you get cheap satisfaction from being pointlessly aggressive, feel free to continue if it makes you feel good.

I'm hopeful on Harmes but still in 'wait and see' mode. There has not been a big enough body of evidence to say whether he is the real deal or not. If he can continue on from where he left off last season then awesome. I'm just a little worried that he will be another Hunt or Kent, showing us blocks of great stuff and then not following up...

I'll be in again. Team name: Demonators

If you believe the PR, dropping Fritsch was about height and matchups. WC were playing 3 talls. I really like the idea of Fritsch, KK and Salem rotating the HB sweeper / wing positions.

Why 2020? This is the 2nd or 3rd time I've seen someone sign off like this. Are we skipping 2019 because it is an odd numbered year?

They are not ranking the defenders we had all year. Lever was injured most of the year and May was at the gold coast. They are ranking our best fully fit defense we would have in 2019.

I can totally see Hunt on a wing if he is playing at his best. I don’t know what happened to him last year, maybe drank too much of his own bath water in 2017? He just never looked like cementing a spot in 2018 even with Lever out and a huge hole in our defence. At his best he can mark, run seriously fast, prop and kick it a mile. He can clearly finish well in front of goal also. He is never going to be an inside mid but we don’t need him to be. As a winger he could really be something if he just settles down, does the work and starts lowering his eyes. I really hope he does.

It seems like people always need something to worry about. If forward depth is that thing for you, then ok. Personally I think our list is about as balanced as I have ever seen. Given our game style and the fact that a high proportion of injuries happen in the midfield, stacking for contested midfield depth seems only sensible. As others have noted Gawn can now rest forward. This is massive for us, he was a leading intercept marker last year when Lever was injured and he dropped back into the hole, he will bring that to our forward line. Preuss is literally massive, it will take a pretty big defenders to curb him if he plays forward. I think people also underestimate Tim Smith, he doesn’t always take the mark but he is as fierce competitor and will generally halve the contest even if he doesn’t take it. If we have injuries and need to play him forward then we just need to ensure that we have crumbers there at the contest. Also as people have noted, many of our backs can swing, including May who has done that role fairly well for GC. We have a fleet of medium forwards who can play tall including Vanders, Petracca and even Hannah to an extent. All of that being said, history shows that staying injury free with a stable team structure is a strong factor in success.

It will be interesting to see what the actual starting 22 will be next year. Does anyone know if Lever is likely to be ready for round 1? I am a little nervous about the backline getting out of whack again and needing some time to settle and get their rhythm right. Also, it is unclear where KK will be at by round 1. He looked great early in his career at GC but haven’t seen much of him since these concusion issues started. I also can’t see Fritsch being left out, particularly if he can play on a wing/half forward where he really belongs. Given the nature of footy, it is unlikely that we will have everyone available so looking at the best 22 from here is kind of unlikely to yield an accurate list. Particularly when we consider that there are 2 second round picks to resolve as well as a few other spots to fill before we get into preseason.

Whoops, I guess I should edit the post and tone down the outrage... nah, let it stand

As people have stated, the decision from our end to recruit Preuss is a no-brainer, completely obvious. I highly suspect the decision from Preuss’ end is based on conversations we have had with him about trialling dual rucks. I have no evidence, it is just speculation based on how well it has worked for the Weagles. Even more than that it gives us some tall support in the forward line in case Weed doesn’t fire and if, god forbid, Mary goes down, we have another option to cover for him for a while. Port Adelaide a B and finishing in the top 8, WTF??? I want some of what Plough is taking. How can you grade them a B off losing Wingard and Polec? Their list is a mess now, recruiting in older players last year to ‘top up’ and then losing 2 of their best mature stars this year. They are going to have to go back to the draft and hope they can get these new kids developed in time to support their aging list in it’s current window. Maybe I am just being too negative but I just can’t see it happening. Collingwood to 10th after playing a premiership this year, not losing anyone and getting Dane Beams back? I dislike the pies as much as anyone but that is too much even for me to hope for!

He is not in that list but I think Nathan Freeman would be worth taking a look at. He promised a lot but injury kept him from delivering at both Collingwood and Saints. He was touted as super fast in his draft year. I guess if he couldn’t get a game at the Saints that is a bad sign though.

I am surprised by how many people have port in the top 8 next year. I am predicting a disastrous season for them. They placed ninth this year and just lost polec and wingard. North is the other surprising team many have named in the 8. They won't get the free ride in the draw they got this year and I just don't see their list as that good. Not as sure about this as port but they just don't look like contenders to me.

That whole trade has a big whiff about it to me Lucifer. Either that ankle is a serious problem or Mcarthy is the worst negotiator in known history. We managed to do better than that in offloading Watts!

He sounds like a familiar story to a demon fan. Lots of raw talent but either doesn't like to work or is always injured. Apparently Lloyd coached him at Halibury and could never get him on the track and firing. They have been unable to get anything out of him at GC and are prepared to trade him for nothing. Doesn't sound promising.

I have no idea about the truth of it, just that it is a terrible piece of so called journalism and has no view other than what Freo say is behind their ‘due dilligence’ comments. It is also logically inconsistent.

It’s hard to know where to begin. Firstly it is not a description off the trade taken from multiple angles, it is a press statement from Fremantle siting only their view of why they are behaving like idiots. Next it does not logically hold water, as others have mentioned, how did the deal get to club to club negotiations without them having an in principal agreement on the contract. That just doesn’t happen these days, before tings even progress to the club that holds the player the purchasing club and player have a deal in place. Next: The substance of the article is that Jesse’s contract length is the killer what could Melbourne buckling doabout that? The whole article is just a PR statement from Freo. I am not saying that the journalist is biased, just lazy and more like a PR agent than a journo

Wow, I had forgotten he was on our list. He has never really seemed comfortable at AFL level. A couple of years ago his disposal seemed as if he was playing on the opposing team. Earlier in the year he looked a little better but just doesn’t seem to bring anything much to the team. They must rate him as they keep giving him chances but I haven’t seen anything to believe he would deserve a new contract. Good luck to him though.

I really like Viney on field, but for me Jones is the most credible voice for the club. He has been an absolute stalwart and still plays a critical role on field. I know he can't play forever but the way his last few years are managed will be the mark of the club we have become.

Trade period starting to shape up nicely. Tyson for Preuss, finally a serious backup ruck and the possibility of rotating rucks in a game is really interesting. Hogan stays, regardless of the DL carry on, this is a geat outcome. He is a serious talent and makes a flag next year more likely than without him Kent pick for KK? Or something around that mark. This kid could take tyson's place on the wing and bring some real speed and height. I can't see the may deal getting done unless the suns change their tune but I am not that worried about it. We have a pretty nice selection of picks for Jason to do his magic.

Hahaha, 283 pages of angst... net result? Nothing to see here

Henneberry is their Tyson but taking up even more salary cap space and a question as to whether he can even play his inside mid role anymore.

I think you would be best to take this to the highly speculative Jesse Hogan thread. There are no shortages of opinion there for what is really going on with Jesse

He has all the attributes and is still building. I just can't help but feel he should be better than he actually is. Gus went past him this year both in impact and consistency. I still think he has another gear or two left to go. I keep waiting for a break out game where it all comes together but it is looking more like a slow incremental build. I'm ok with that so long as it keeps going, he is nowhere near his full potential. I agree with the earlier comment that dropping a couple of kgs and building a bigger tank will get him into more contests. I think he is better in the midfield too, until he can sort out his head with his set shots.

Could be anything, it is very hard to say. We have had quite a few players who have shown a lot of potential in their first year and then dropped off badly. Let's hope he keeps building, I see a lot of potential, particularly if he gets some weights into that kicking leg and develops a more penetrating kick. I agree he seems to have a very good instinctive game, that is something that is almost impossible to teach. If he does the hard work and puts the rest of the pieces into the puzzle he could be the small forward we have been looking for.